New York

Connected to New York

At Bank of America, we're committed to helping grow local economies and strengthen the communities we serve. By combining local support and expertise with our national reach, we're connecting customers and communities across the country to the resources they need to thrive.

Every day is a new opportunity to help make life better right here in New York.

Whether it’s helping local businesses like Brooklyn Brewery grow and prosper, supporting nonprofits like Bronx River Alliance as they fulfill their mission or helping neighborhood developments like Dumont Green become vibrant communities.

If there’s a way to help the people of New York thrive and succeed, we’ll find it.

That’s the power of local connections. That’s Bank of America.

Helping New York thrivebankofamerica1359940|enter782|cr-en402_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

We’re here in beautiful New York City. We’re in Times Square, and we’re here with our good friends Bank of America, and it’s Fleet Week. We are celebrating service.

Fleet Week involves the Navy, the Coast Guard and the Marine Corps. All of the sea services. It gives New York City a chance to see what a sailor, Marine, or Coast Guard’s men is like, and it links us together as a society.

This is the third year of the Express Your Thanks campaign.

We’re out here to give people an opportunity to express their thanks. For every expression of thanks, we’ll donate $1 to a veteran’s related charity, up to $1 million dollars.

Come on over guys! Upload a photo and get yourself on the billboard.

I think it's wonderful to send our messages from all the people in this country to our troops. And whatever they’re doing to help accomplish that, we’re gonna stand behind it. What’d you write on the board guys?

Sending love and peace!

Troops do so much and they sacrifice everything, so to be able to give back for all the hard work they do..I think it’s really nice. Ha Ha. I made it!

Aahhhh yeahhh..yayyyy

Each time I’ve heard thank you for my service or welcome home..it’s never gotten old. I’ve never taken it for granted. It really has just helped me recover.

It’s so important for us to say thank you anytime we have an opportunity to do so.

When you know your efforts are appreciated, it makes it all worthwhile.

It makes me really proud to know that we live in this amazing country, and I was able to fight for it.

Expressing our thanks in NYC during Fleet Week/en-us/partnering-locally/expressing-our-thanks-nyc-fleet-week.htmlView Videobankofamerica1359940|enter782|cr-en402Connecting people around the world to support our troops during Fleet Week NYC/en-us/partnering-locally/expressing-our-thanks-nyc-fleet-week.html_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

(v/o) Steve Hindy: 120 years ago there were 48 breweries in Brooklyn, it was a major brewing center and the last 2 big breweries…

SUPER: STEVE HINDY, FOUNDER & PRESIDENT, BROOKLYN BREWERY

Steve Hindy: …closed in 1976, so I thought Brooklyn would be a great place for a microbrewery. We launched Brooklyn Lager in 1988. We worked really hard and established the brand, and now we sell in 25 states and 20 countries around the world.

SUPER: ERIC OTTAWAY, GENERAL MANAGER & COO, BROOKLYN BREWERY

Eric Ottoway: Brooklyn lager was our very first product and it sort of evolved from there, and now in any given year we produce probably 25 to 30 different beers. We’re always coming up with new fun things.

JIMMY VALM, PRODUCTION MANAGER, BROOKLYN BREWERY

Jimmy Valm: This is Sorachi Ace, it’s a Belgian saison style. It’s got a little bit of spiciness, a little bit of citrus.

Eric Ottoway: People thought we were crazy to move to this neighborhood. We couldn’t pay people to come here when we first opened our doors here to the public.

Steve Hindy: We now get three to four thousand people on the weekend. People line up outside of the brewery.

Eric Ottoway: Now it seems like every week there’s yet another bar or restaurant opening up. We’re proud of the role that we’ve played in helping to get that going. There’s a time for every business where you need, sort of, outside capital to help you grow. We get approached every day by venture capitalists or private equity firms, but bank of America has provided us the kind of financing that we need so that we don’t have to go down that road, and I think that the company will be much stronger and healthier for that in the long run.

SUPER: LAUREN HEINRICH, CLIENT MANGAGER, BANK OF AMERICA

Lauren Heinrich: They had two requirements; one was for bank financing and the other was to really have a relationship with their bank, somebody that could help them with the cash management, with their credit card processing.

Eric Ottoway: Bank of America is a key part of our expansion these days. We’re working on a brewery projects overseas. Were currently building a brewery in Stockholm.

Steve Hindy: Were very excited about building other breweries in other great cities around the world, and that name Brooklyn, you know, it’s a great calling card.

Eric Ottoway: Brooklyn brewery is now one of the iconic names in New York City; it’s really become part of the fabric that makes Brooklyn such a fun place today.

Good Beer Pairs Well With a Good Story/en-us/partnering-locally/brooklyn-brewery.html1359940|enter782|cr-en402/en-us/partnering-locally/brooklyn-brewery.html_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||/assets/images/partnering-locally/articles/NY_LI_NJ_BrooklynBrewery_071913_01380_400x400.jpgtaps and metal logo

V/O (Michael Gelfand): East New York was not a neighborhood that people wanted to live in for a long time.

SUPER: Aaron Koffman, Director of Affordable Housing, Hudson Inc.

V/O (Aaron Koffman): Hudson got their start twenty-five years ago doing affordable housing mostly in Brooklyn. We saw it as an opportunity to go into these neighborhoods and do something different.

V/O (Hannah Seliem): This is my, um, favorite part of the house because, um, I can just go in my room and close the door. But in the shelter where we used to live, I would’ve never had my own bed.

V/O (Michelle Seliem): When we coming down the block she saw the building and she was like ‘Mommy, look at those solar panels’ like she actually believed me because we saw it online.

V/O (Alexis Regnier): And then there’s the air conditioner he said ‘oh my gosh they have an air conditioner.’

SUPER: Michael Gelfand, Dumont Green Architect

V/O (Michael Gelfand): This project really emulates the core values of our entire practice which is really to provide quality environments for those who really don’t have much choice in life.

V/O (Aaron Koffman): That’s the first-phase of a three-phase project. We will start construction on the next three buildings that are next to it, that’s 185 units. Our buildings will all have retail on the ground floor.

V/O (Alexis Regnier): I was completely floored. Especially the electric key and getting in the building. No one can’t pick the lock.

V/O (Michael Gelfand): I am told that Dumont Green is not only green, but the greenest affordable housing project in New York state.

V/O (Barbara Brookins): This is the best thing that’s happened to me in years.

V/O (Dietra Jones): To know your whole life is different now.

V/O (Hannah Seliem): I feel smarter.

V/O (Aaron Koffman): I think Dumont Green is a new standard for affordable housing.

SUPER: Todd Gomez, Commercial Real Estate Banking, Bank of America

V/O (Todd Gomez): I like to be able to drive around cities across the country and point to buildings and say, I had a part of that.

nyspotlightdefaultPlayertrueblack/assets/images/partnering-locally/LM-Spotlight/242x167/42191_NYC_COMMUNITYKITCHEN_05_14_2012-5095_HIRES_242x167.jpg|Worker helping at the New York Community Kitchen |Believing and Investing in New York ||

Kate Levin: In New York City, there’s an extraordinary level of enjoyment and excitement and adventure.

SUPER: Jeff Barker, NYC Market President, Bank of America

Jeff Barker: Bank of America is so proud to be part of what makes New York City what it is.

SUPER: Kate Levin, Commissioner, New York City Department of Cultural Affairs

Kate Levin: Bank of America’s been extraordinary over the past number of years in rolling out corporate philanthropy in New York. New York City is really an extraordinary cultural center. And culture’s really the city’s only signature industry that’s in all five boroughs. And it makes a big difference to the city’s economy and identity.

Jeff Barker: Bank of America has long felt, that support of the arts is important to New York. It’s important for economic development.

SUPER: WHITNEY MUSEUM OF ART, WORKING TOGETHER SINCE 1985

SUPER: Donna De Salvo, Chief Curator, Whitney Museum of American Art

Donna De Salvo: The move downtown is a transformative moment for the museum; to have a more substantial space to display our collection. And the opportunity to bring these works to the public through the sponsorship of Bank of America is really extraordinary.

SUPER: THE BRIDGE PROJECT

SUPER: Kevin Spacey, The Bridge Project, A Partnership between the Old Vic, Neal Street and BAM

Kevin Spacey: If it weren’t for Bank of America we just simply couldn’t do the vast amount of work we do. And we’ve been enormously grateful.

Tom Carley: If you can make it here in New York, you can make it anywhere.

SUPER: Zvi Cohen, Owner, Basics Plus

Zvi Cohen: New York is a tough place to do business. But on the other hand it’s the place to do business.

SUPER: BASICS PLUS, CLIENT SINCE 2008

Zvi Cohen: I decided to expand one of my locations. Three weeks from the day that I asked for finance, I had the money in the bank. It was really great.

SUPER: Tom Carley, Business Banking, Bank of America

Tom Carley: What we often hear from our clients about what separates us from the competition here in New York, is our client team approach.

SUPER: Nadine Cino, CEO/Co-Inventor TYGA-Box Systems, Inc.

Nadine Cino: We’ve been working on this vision of creating an electronic tracking system. And we actually created the business plan.

SUPER: TYGA BOXES, CLIENT SINCE 2012

SUPER: Joe DeOrio, Small Business Banking, Bank of America

Joe DeOrio: The size of the loan that they needed was out my segment in the small business banking world. So then I referred to Rhaza in the business banking world.

SUPER: Raza Khan, Business Banking, Bank of America

Raza Khan: It was great that he reached out to me and we were able to work together, and find a solution for Tyga boxes.

SUPER: Daniel Korolev, Small Business Banking, Bank of America

Daniel Korolev: Part of our small business banking division is to get to know our small business community. And this is how I ended up meeting Serge.

SUPER: SERGE RESTAURANTS, CLIENT SINCE 2011

SUPER: Serge Durka, Owner, Serge Restaurants

Serge Durka: The relationship for me is very important. When you know each other, you can trust each other. We build something very strong.

SUPER: Connie Verducci, NY Market Manager, Bank of America

Connie Verducci: At Bank of America we want to make sure, neighborhood by neighborhood, that we’re doing our part to make New York City livable.

SUPER: FOOD BANK FOR NEW YORK CITY, WORKING TOGETHER SINCE 2009

SUPER: Lisa Hines-Johnson, COO, Food Bank For New York City

Lisa Hines-Johnson: The Food Bank has been around since 1983 responding to the needs of some of our most vulnerable neighbors in the community.

SUPER: Daryl Foriest, Sr. Director Food Distribution, Food Bank For New York City

Daryl Foriest: One out of five New Yorkers need our services.

SUPER: Kisha Hunter, Volunteer, Bank of America

Kisha Hunter: The fact that we could volunteer our time to help people that are less fortunate than us; it’s a wonderful feeling.

SUPER: CITIZEN’S COMMITTEE FOR NEW YORK CITY, WORKING TOGETHER SINCE 2000

SUPER: Mike Young, Garden President/Farmers Market Manager

Mike Young: This garden was an eyesore. And my daughter kept saying, “Daddy. Why don’t we do something with that place?” Today we can say you know what, you can see and feel the difference in the whole community.

SUPER: Peter Kostmayer, CEO, Citizens Committee for New York City

Peter Kostmayer: Bank of America has been unbelievably generous to us. Not just with their dollars, but with time and volunteers.

Connie Verducci: It’s a real feeling of pride when you go out there, and you work together, and at the end of that project you’ve really made a difference.

SUPER: DIEGO BEEKMAN HOUSING ASSOCIATION, CLIENT SINCE 2003

SUPER: Maria Ortiz, Resident, Diego Beekman

Maria Ortiz: I grew up in this neighborhood. And I was here when it was in very bad shape.

giving-back-in-bronxdefaultPlayertrueblack/assets/images/Military/EV_Bronx_878x494.jpg|Giving back in the Bronx|Giving back in the Bronx||

BRONX-NEW YORK/VOLUNTEERS OF AMERICA OF NEW YORK

Dwayne Gathers (Veteran), U.S. Army: It isn’t easy when veterans come back home. My veterans here, they get lost because people don’t understand them. They fall through the cracks.

Mariel Cruceta, Program Director, Commonwealth Veterans Residence: Commonwealth Veterans Residence is located in the Bronx in the Songview section, and we serve 149 formerly homeless adult men and women who are all veterans.

Claire Altman, President & CEO, Volunteers of America of Greater New York: In New York City, 26 percent of our homeless individuals happen to be veterans.

Mariel Cruceta: Facilities like this give the veterans an opportunity to transition from being in the military to being a civilian once again. The lounges serve as a place for the veterans to congregate with each other. It’s kind of like their living room. They really needed a facelift. They needed a little bit of a makeover and some fresh paint to brighten it up.

Jeff Barker, NYC Market President, Bank of America: Today really embodies what Bank of America is all about. We have a group of fifty volunteers from all different lines of business who are dedicating their time to paint and to fix up some of the common areas.

Herbert McClary (Veteran), Credit Associate, Bank of America: I am a veteran myself, so it’s extremely important for me to help out those who maybe didn’t have the opportunities I did coming out. So any opportunity I can get to have an impact, I’m all for it.

Lewis Runnion, Senior VP, Public Policy, Bank of America: Veterans have a great sense of pride, and they don’t like to ask for help. By coming here today and refreshing this facility we make if not like a shelter, we make it more like a home. And it seems less like an ask and more like a transitional place for them to come to get back on their feet.

Mariel Cruceta: Because it really does make a difference. It’s not just putting paint on a wall. It’s making it feel like a place the veterans are proud to bring their family and their friends to see where they live and the place that they call their home.

Jeff Barker: Our veterans have given so much of their lives in service to this country, and a day like today, we’re giving a few hours of our time in service to them. It’s very meaningful to our team, and it really is the least we can do.

Giving back in the Bronxbankofamerica1359940|enter782|2014_460_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

CONNIE VERDUCCI: The Bank of America Winter Village is a great gathering spot. You’ll see New Yorkers, tourists, families, all types of folks from all five boroughs of New York and I would say from around the world coming here to Bryant Park to experience what we have here.

DAN BIEDERMAN: When we took over Bryant Park from New York City in 1980, there were two employees here. Bryant Park now provides annual employment to about one thousand people directly. We have restaurants, kiosks. This is a busy place that has become an economic engine.

CONNIE VERDUCCI: There’s so much to do here. You can shop here, you can eat here, and you can skate for free. Doesn’t get better than that.

DAN BIEDERMAN: We couldn’t do any of these things that are really beyond the normal budget of running a rink without the Bank’s sponsorship.

CONNIE VERDUCCI: Bank of America has always been a big supporter of the arts here in New York City especially. So when we go out there and look for local artists, it’s really important to be able to showcase their work.

DANIEL HERTZBERG: We tried to make it as wintery as possible. Every illustration we used here has something uniquely Bryant Park about it.

CONNIE VERDUCCI: It’s a great opportunity for local businesses here in New York to be able to all come together and showcase their wares.

SUZANNE SANBORN: My tagline here is that nothing in my booth is imported. Everything here comes over via the L-train.

RACHEL MEDNICK: It’s wonderful to be able to walk around, there’s so many local vendors and great businesses. And it’s just kind of a little sanctuary in the middle of Manhattan.

MARIE-PIERRE PULCINI: This fairy-tale like setting, people will come here and they enjoy that.

SOPHIE: There’s so much different crafty items and good stocking stuffers and things for your family.

DAN COHEN: It’s beautiful because you want your gift to be unique.

EMILY AND PAUL: I think it’s really important that Bank of America sponsors all these artists because you know this is how they make their money in the holidays.

CONNIE VERDUCCI: You can just come and dine and really watch everyone skate if you don’t want to participate. Or you go over and get a pair of skates and go around the rink.

JESSICA AND AVA: We get to spend some time together, get a little exercise, get our family ornament for the year. And have some fun.

TY AND DEZIRAE: There’s no place like this in New York. Everything is here, I really can’t emphasize enough the warmth and just the spirit that pulses through Bryant Park. There’s nothing like it.

STEPHANIE AND JACK: It’s such an amazing environment, full of energy. My son begged me to come so we flew here today actually.

harbor-picture-companydefaultPlayertrueblack/assets/images/partnering-locally/articles/NY_LI_NJ_HarborFilms_071513_01031-878x494.jpg|Zak Tucker and Theo Stanley|Mastering the Creative Process in a Competitive City||

BANK OF AMERICA – LOCAL MARKETS 2013NEW YORK - HARBOR PICTURES AS PRODUCED VIDEO TRANSCRIPT

SUPER: ZAK TUCKER, PRESIDENT, HARBOR PICTURE COMPANY

Zak Tucker: Harbor Picture Company is a full service post-production and production studio for feature films, television, and commercials in New York City. On a typical day, there is anywhere between fifty and a hundred different artists and producers and coordinators working here, handling anywhere from five to fifteen feature films at a time, both studio and independent. We opened our doors in this facility a little over fifteen months ago. We thought we would do one or two feature films in the first year, and we’ve done close to thirty. So at that point we reached out to Mario Dicerbo our main contact at Bank of America and asked him to come in. We sort of said to him “we don’t even know exactly what were gonna need, but we imagine we’re gonna need something.”

SUPER: MARIO DICERBO, SR. CLIENT MANAGER, BANK OF AMERICA

Mario Dicerbo: We started off with, obviously the first expansion going from 2,500 to 10,000 square feet. Shortly thereafter they thought that they wanted to invest in new equipment. We helped them with the equipment need. Stage number 3 came within the same 12 month period, where they ??

Zak Tucker: He spent, you know, several months talking to us, not just about like what particular account we would get or how the financing would work what we were trying to build and usually part of the actual creative process of us building this studio

Mario Dicerbo: We have conversations all the time. Relationships are the focus of what we do, what were about.

Zak Tucker: Our relationship with Bank of America is actually quite critical to our current success and our future expansion plans. We want to thoughtfully and organically grow our business. We view this whole thing whether it’s on the banking side or on the film making side as a creative process. This whole thing is like making a movie every day.

Mastering the Creative Process in a Competitive City/en-us/partnering-locally/harbor-picture-company.htmlbankofamerica1359940|enter782|cr-en402/en-us/partnering-locally/harbor-picture-company.html_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

Providing a new home to a New York veteran with Joe Girardi./en-us/partnering-locally/bronx-home-donations.htmlGet the whole story.bankofamerica1359940|enter782|cr-en402See how we teamed up with Yankees manager Joe Girardi to help provide a home to a New York veteran./en-us/partnering-locally/bronx-home-donations.html_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

Zvi Cohen: I always knew that I’m going to have my own business. And I always knew that it’s going to be in New York also. Basics Plus is a chain of hardware and houseware stores.

Rafael Villar: Our motto is, whoever walks in, doesn’t walk out empty-handed. Cause either, we have everything they need, or we get whatever they need.

(V/O) Zvi Cohen: After I finished the army in Israel I came to New York City. And then I opened my own tiny little locksmith shop. Customers that came in to cut keys, started to ask for all kinds of hardware. Do you have a hammer? Do you sell a screwdriver? Soon enough I had over twenty thousand different items. Everybody needs something that we carry. Whether it’s blankets, to screws, to candles…

Alec Schlimel: I was trying to find a bag for my vacuum cleaner and they do have it.

Rafael Villar: Most of the customers that we have are repeating customers. And it’s not expensive.

Zvi Cohen: The employees know the customers by name. It’s a big party going on basically. I started to work with Bank of America when they opened a branch right next to my office. They give me great service.

Edward Addeo: I love working with business owners. I like to tell them, they have an accountant, they have an attorney, and they have a banker.

Zvi Cohen: I decided to expand one of my locations. I have so much merchandise over there, that there is no room for customers anymore. And I had an opportunity to rent the next door store.

Edward Addeo: Zvi is very ambitious. And I respect that. We went over everything that he needed to build out the store. And then I took the process from there.Zvi Cohen: It was there for me. He told me that whatever happens, they’re going to be there with the money. Three weeks from the date that I asked for a finance, I had the money in the bank. It was really great.

Edward Addeo: Now he’s moving forward with the construction. And purchasing the inventory.

Zvi Cohen: This is going to be my flagship store. New York is a tough place to do business. But on the other hand, it’s the place to do business. In the last three years I opened three locations. And I’m very proud to be giving a hundred jobs at these tough times.

Edward Addeo: There are nine stores now. I’d love to see them grow to ten, fifteen, twenty. They listen to the customers in the area, and anytime you do that, you’re gonna succeed.

Zvi Cohen: And I’m very confident that Ed and Bank of America will be there for me when I need them. Our customers love us. The business is doing well. We must be doing something right.

Marty Spindell: I got onto this railroad car. In which there was no one else on it, except one woman. And the moment I saw her, I knew that I’d just seen the love of my life. This was thirty-three years ago.

SUPER: Nadine Cino, CEO/Co-Inventor, TYGA-Box Systems, Inc.

Nadine Cino: And then one day we had this bright idea to start a business together. We are now, heading up a company that is poised to go global. You’ve probably all witnessed a classical corrugated box move. Dollies come in, and the movers are just grabbing anything and plopping it on top of the dolly. Chaos.

Marty Spindell: One night we were talking about the moving industry because we were in the process of moving our apartment. And we came up with an idea for a business.

Nadine Cino: Our goal, was to take the entire contents of a single five-drawer file cabinet, and, move it in a single stack.

SUPER: Michael Varoukas, CFO, CRS Corporate Relocation Systems, Inc.

Michael Varoukas: We’re constantly using them and their products. One mover, can actually move, as much as ten boxes by themself.

SUPER: Gerald Alvarez, Warehouse Supervisor, TYGA-Box Systems, Inc.

Gerald Alvarez: There’s no lifting involved of any sort, so it makes it almost effortless in a move job.

Nadine Cino: You’re transporting forty percent more per dolly load, compared to a conventional corrugated stack. And that’s why this company took the market by storm. Because who could say no a twenty-five, thirty percent cost reduction. Since 2000 we’ve been working on this vision, of creating an electronic tracking system.

Gerald Alvarez: The user can be able to see where their box is, the contents of their box, and know when it’s been moved, when it’s in the new facility, at all times.

Nadine Cino: We engaged with engineers and we actually created the business plan.

SUPER: Joe DeOrio, Small Business Banking, Bank of America

Joe DeOrio: The size of the loan that they needed was out of my segment in the small business banking world. So then I referred to Raza in the business banking world.

SUPER: Raza Khan, Global Commercial Banking, Bank of America

Raza Khan: It was great that he reached out to me, and we were able to work together, and find a solution for TYGA Box.

Nadine Cino: With the money that we’ve been able to borrow from Bank of America, we’ll be able to take this from the concepts and the BETA test, and be expanded to the full vision.

Joe DeOrio: We offer a full breadth of Bank of America’s products and services. Credit card processing, merchant services, treasury management. You really have to listen to the company, and see what their needs are.

Marty Spindell: Bank of America understood what our company is about, our vision. They really care.

Raza Khan: We’ve connected our clients through the right solutions and to the right people.

Joe DeOrio: And that’s the rewarding part of our job, is when we can help them grow their business.

Marty Spindell: This company, is such a big part of our lives. It’s a joy to work with the love of my life.

Innovative Company Thinks Outside the Box to Change/en-us/partnering-locally/tyga.htmlView Morebankofamerica1359940|enter782|cr-en402/en-us/partnering-locally/tyga.html_self1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

sergedefaultPlayertrueblack/assets/images/partnering-locally/2H-thumbs/serge_113012_878x494.jpg|Two Serge Restaurants chefs preparing meals in a kitchen|French Bistro Finds New Ways to Refine Its Cuisine – and Its Business ||

BANK OF AMERICA RTP- New York Serge Restaurants- As Produced Video Transcript

SUPER: Serge Durka, Owner, Serge Restaurants

Serge Durka: I start like a bus boy in this place. I went to school to learn some English, and after that became a waiter in this place. And two years after I bought this place. And then next week, I’m going to open my second place.

SUPER: Daniel Korolev, Small Business Banking, Bank of America

Daniel Korolev: Serge has an immense following. We have customers who come here two to three times a week.

SUPER: Denis Perone, Customer, Serge Restaurants

Denis Perone: I enjoy coming here. It’s like being home.

SUPER: Servane Broustal, Employee, Serge Restaurants

Servane Broustal: It’s still traditional. French Bistro, with some items you don’t find anymore.

Denis Perone: Chicken Cordon Bleu was excellent today.

Daniel Korolev: It’s in the heart of New York, but it’s as if you’re immersing yourself into a little restaurant in Paris.

Servane Broustal: I work here from the beginning of this restaurant.

Serge Durka: For many years I have the same people. If you take care of them, they are going to stay. And even when it was very hard time, two years ago, with the business going down, my goal it was to keep everybody. It was very hard, but no regrets. We did it.

Daniel Korolev: Part of our small business banking division, is to get to know our small business community. And this is how I ended up meeting Serge.

Serge Durka: Two years ago, I said maybe it’s time to get a credit line somewhere, and I went on a different bank.

Daniel Korolev: He had multiple banking relationships. A lot of things were complex.

Serge Durka: For years, for business I think, sometimes you need some advice. I met Daniel from Bank of America. It was direct, honest, and he was nice with me. He said, ‘Let’s do it. Let’s start together.’

Daniel Korolev: I do listen because I know how important it is. At Bank of America, we do have solutions for him. I analyzed his entire business model, and was able to consolidate it. Within our platform, we’re able to give him a line of credit. One of the biggest struggles was, to overcome shortages of cash flow. Our merchant processing allows the client to receive funds, the day after the sale is made. So that allows him to go to the market every morning to get food for the restaurant. Our online business suite allows him to view all of his accounts out of one window.

Serge Durka: Every morning, I get my coffee. I go right away my computer. Very simple. I have everything. Personal check accounts. Two businesses check accounts. My credit card too. It’s very easy.

Daniel Korolev: It gives him time to do what he does best. Which is growing his business.

Serge Durka: The relationship for me is very important. When you know each other, you can trust each other. We’ve built something very strong. This kind of business is very nice. The ambiance, the wine, I make a good choice in my life.

French Bistro Finds New Ways to Refine Its Cuisine – and Its Business/en-us/partnering-locally/serge.htmlView Morebankofamerica1359940|enter782|cr-en402/en-us/partnering-locally/serge.html_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_581||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

newdestinydefaultPlayertrueblack/assets/images/partnering-locally/local-markets-3/video-stills/new-destiny-housing_101512_878x494.jpg|Children on the steps outside of New Destiny Housing|NYC’s New Destiny Housing Provides Safe, Affordable Housing So Families Can Escape Domestic Violence ||

BANK OF AMERICA RTP- New York- New Destiny- As Produced Video Transcript

SUPER: Clarissa, Resident, New Destiny Housing

Clarissa: At some point in your life you feel like there's no out. And when I went to the homeless shelter that was my last option.

SUPER: Carol Corden, Executive Director, New Destiny Housing

Carol Corden: At least thirty percent of the homeless families who are in the homeless shelters system are there because of domestic violence.

Clarissa: I was in an abusive relationship that I was trying to get out of. And I feared for the safety of myself and my son. I wanted to survive,

Carol Corden: Domestic violence is a huge problem. You have individuals who really are the victim of a crime, but, they are the ones who are being forced to make themselves and their children homeless.

Clarissa: I kept telling myself there was going to be a light at the end of the tunnel. I was lucky to encounter New Destiny. And I applied for a unit.

Carol Corden: New Destiny's role is really to try to make sure that people, after leaving shelter, have a safe, stable place to go. And a place to really develop a better future.

SUPER: NEREIDA ANDINO, Community Relations Manager, Bank of America

Nereida Andino: They care about, ‘How do we change lives' and 'How do we really make sure that these familes get strong again? And can go on with their lives?'

Carol Corden: We actually develop housing. And the idea is really to try to keep the debt on the building as low as possible to really make sure that the rents in the buildings are affordable to very low-income people. And so Bank of America is making it possible for us to actually build the buildings that will provide housing for this very vulnerable population.

Nereida Andino: It's not just about giving the dollars and showing up to work. But it's a real passion, a real commitment on my part. I grew up in a neighborhood like this. And, being able to see little girls that I know that our dollars and that our work is really impacting. It reminds me of me.

Carol Corden: I think Bank of America is trying to build the capacity of the organization to do the things it's doing even better. And I think, that's a different kind of relationship.

Nereida Andino: I see the difference that they've made in this neighborhood and many neighborhoods throughout the city. People that know New Destiny and know other people that have gone through this, see that you can change your life.

Clarissa: New Destiny has helped me to heal because it's allowed me to become a stronger person. It's allowed me to see beyond the present and into the future. Everything is possible now.

citizenscommitteedefaultPlayertrueblack/assets/images/partnering-locally/local-markets-3/video-stills/citizens-committee-for-new-york-city_07272012_878x494.jpg|Two Citizens Committee for New York City volunteers gardening|New Yorkers creating change in 5 Boroughs. ||

SUPER: Peter Kostmayer,CEO, Citizens Committee for NYC

Peter Kostmayer: Citizens Committee for New York City was founded in 1975 during a terrible fiscal crisis in the city when thousands of city workers were being laid off. And the people who founded the organization, put an ad in The New York Times, asking for volunteers. This year, we have three hundred and fifty one separate projects in the five boroughs of New York.

SUPER: Connie Verducci, SVP, NY Market Manager, Bank of America

Connie Verducci: Citizens Committee for New York City is a unique organization because they work with groups like garden clubs, tenant associations, block associations.

Peter Kostmayer: We provide very small grants. Five hundred bucks, to five thousand bucks, to groups of New Yorkers, who have an idea to improve their neighborhood.

SUPER: Mike Young, Garden President/ Farmers Market Manager

Mike Young: Before coming to the Bronx, I came from Jamaica, Queens. And I’m always used to having a backyard. This garden’s clothes at the time was an eyesore. It was a lot of rubbish here, drug dealers, on the lawn, and as my daughter and I were walking past here, as I was taking her to school, she kept saying, ‘Daddy, why don’t we do something with that place?’

SUPER: Jada Young, Mike Young’s Daughter

Jada Young: First I would think it could become a park, then I would think it could become a castle or something

Connie Verducci: Many of these projects that the Citizen’s Committee funds, really do change a neighborhood.

Mike Young: You see people pass by, and they’re looking, and you see, the look, on people’s faces. They’re smiling, they’re saying good morning…

Connie Verducci: People can go out of their apartments and they can go across the street, they can barbeque, they can plant, they can have fun..

Peter Kostmayer: I think everybody likes to feel that they’re doing the right thing. And that they’re making a contribution to this country and to the society and to the city. And Bank of America has been unbelievably generous to us. Not just with their dollars, but with time, and volunteers. So not long ago, a couple dozen folks from Bank of America, came to this particular garden, and spent the whole day working here.

Connie Verducci: t’s a real feeling of pride when you go out there, and you work together. And at the end of that project, you’ve really made a difference.

Mike Young: A lot of the children express that, ‘Wow, we live in a little apartment, but this is like my backyard. Mr. Mike, can we come and help you every day with this?’

Jada Young: It’s very exciting to know that I’m not the only kid that wants to know about gardening.

Mike Young: She started teaching them, and, she’s been working with the kids, ever since. And that’s been five years now. She won an award for being the youngest gardener, in New York City.

Connie Verducci: People really wanna make a difference. They need help to do that. They need some money, they need some empowerment. And Citizen’s Committee for New York City, and our support of a Green Grants Program, really just allows them to do what they want to do.

V/O (Peter Kostmayer): It creates a kind of pride in the community. I think which then radiates outward.

Peter Kostmayer: I think it’s a lifesaver; in a community like this and throughout the city.

New Yorkers creating change in 5 Boroughs./en-us/partnering-locally/citizens-committee-for-new-york-city.htmlGet the whole storybankofamerica1359940|enter782|cr-en402Working with New Yorkers to create positive change in the five boroughs./en-us/partnering-locally/citizens-committee-for-new-york-city.html_self1359940|enter782|2014_859||1359940|enter782|2014_00||

V/O (Arline Parks): In the seventies, and eighties, the Bronx had all these burnt-out buildings. Landlords burning out these buildings for insurances, because they couldn’t afford to keep them up. Drugs destroyed the neighborhood. The Bronx literally was just a urban blight.

SUPER: Maria Ortiz, Resident, Diego Beekman

V/O (Maria Ortiz): I grew up in this neighborhood, and around the Diego-Beekman Houses. And I was here when it was, everything was just falling apart around us, it was in very bad shape.

SUPER: Consuelo Bacote, Resident, Diego Beekman

Consuelo Bacote: Back then, you would pick up your chair and run

SUPER: Barbara Dolberry, Resident, Diego Beekman

Barbara Dolberry: Exactly… From bullets!... From bullets!

Consuelo Bacote: Seriously. You would not, I mean when they said a rumble you were getting out of the way.

Barbara Dolberry: That’s right.

SUPER: Sonia Taylor, Resident, Diego Beekman

Sonia Taylor: This is our home. We wanted a better quality of life for our children. And the only way that we can do it is to participate. So we did decide to come together in a group.

Arline Parks: They went and walked these buildings and got people coming to meetings and discussing how to revitalize the neighborhood so that people could safely raise their families here.

Consuelo Bacote: Tenants would come and connect and the children would come and connect, you know, ‘Can I do anything for you? Can I help you?’

SUPER: Maurice Coleman, Community Development Banking, Bank of America

Maurice Coleman: There was a need, and, they decided to stand up and to put their creative thinking caps on, and to figure out how to bring the right partners in to address the need.

Arline Parks: After years of being persistent, we formed a Mutual Housing Association. So we could take ownership of the buildings. We have thirty eight buildings, one thousand two hundred and thirty eight apartment units, and in 2003 we purchased all thirty-eight of these buildings. We needed financing, to fix these buildings up. Because of the history of Diego-Beekman, no financial institution would actually give us any money. Bank of America took the risk.

Maurice Coleman: We’ve been actively involved in every aspect of this development. From financing to helping to select property management, you name it we’ve been involved here. This project serves as a catalyst for change, for so many communities to come.

Maria Ortiz: From the way it was, to the way it is now? Wow. Night and day.

SUPER: Damaris Esquilin, Resident, Diego Beekman Housing

Damaris Esquilin: You feel more safe going outside, we have more stores, we have banks, schools are improving..

Arline Parks: The women in this neighborhood never gave up. They empower themselves to affect their lives.

Maurice Coleman: They are true trailblazers. They represent the true spirit of what this community was about.

Barbara Dolberry: This was where our home was going to be, right here. And we’ve fought to stay here. The Bronx is back.

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